MumsTheWurdUnique finds for hip parents and cool kids

Lennon’s been riding in STYLE lately.  A couple of months ago, he received a Britax Boulevard CS, which is not only the most comfortable looking carseat I’ve laid eyes on, but one of the safest on the market.

Features include:

• Click & Safe Harness Adjuster “clicks” when the harness straps are snug as an audible aide to help determine when the harness is snugly secure
• True Side Impact Protection distributes crash forces, shields from vehicle intrusion, contains the head and body, and minimizes side-to-side head movement
• Quick-Adjust Headrest and Harness re-positions head support and harness height effortlessly without having to rethread the straps
• Higher Forward-Facing Seat Capacity allows children to remain harnessed up to 65 pounds
• Tangle-Free, Five-Point Harness for a snug and secure fit
• Premium Push-Button LATCH Connectors for a quick, simple and tight installation
• Patented Versa-Tether anchors top of seat to minimize movement in a crash
• Rear- and Forward-Facing Recline for child comfort and positioning
• Made in the U.S.A. with US and global components

I’d like to thank my mom for guest posting!  She’s the recepient of this awesome, magnificant messenger bag.  I told her she was getting it before I got it in the mail.  When I saw it, I had an eeny, weeney ounce of regret, because this bag looks AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!  I’m going to ask her to take a picture of it, but I don’t think a picture will do it justice.  My mom is NOT a purse carrier, so I knew this would be great for her, and it’s been a HUGE hit, with her & her pals!  Snaptotes offers a classic collection, leather collection, and a mens collection.  If you feel like it, give a shoutout to Noel & Lennon’s grandmum (also known as Neena) in the comments!  

If you mention a child (or a grandchild) a pet or a vacation, people always ask, “Do you have any pictures?”  Show ‘em your Snaptote!

My handy messenger bag has a cushioning case for a laptop, pockets for pens and business cards, and a large flap that displays your favorite pictures.

Best of all, the reproduction quality of the photographs is beyond expectation.  The messenger bag I have is a higher end purchase, but they have so many choices on their website of more moderately-priced items – everything from wallets and dopp kits (so men can carry their treasured photos, too) to purses and pouches.   

My friends at work want one for themselves or friends.  They are so impressed with the quality of the pictures and the features of the bag as a practical carryall.   

Take a look for yourself.  Snaptotes have lots of choices that are sure to please even the pickiest person!

GET A 10 % DISCOUNT ON SNAPTOTES or at PICSTREET WITH THE COUPON CODE “mums08″!!!

The UPPAbaby Bubble is the best thing I never knew I needed. I’m sure most of you are familiar with UPPAbaby’s awesome line of strollers, but they’ve also got some awesome accessories, like the Bubble! The Bubble is super easy to use on an infant carrier. Just slide it over the top. It’s much less annoying than the little shade that comes with the carrier. It also offers an insect shade AND a sun protection layer with 50+ SPF! We use the Bubble all the time, and we love it. If you’ve got a baby, you must have everything UPPAbaby!

Let’s face it, car seats HAVE to be safe and made to U.S. government standards. However, not all of the car seat companies are with the times when it comes to the most up-to-date features. A well-known and well-respected name in the car seat industry is Britax (pronounced “Br-eye-tax”) and they have manufactured seats that should protect our kids in the unfortunate event of a side-impact collision.

I’m not even going to pretend that I know all there is to know about car seats, but what I can tell you is that the Britax Diplomat (pictured to the left) is the third toddler car seat we have used in the past year. The other two brands we have tested do not have the padded “wing” feature that you can see in the picture. Britax is just one of two European makers of car seats who are marketing this type of seat. From experience, I can tell you that it seems like a very sturdy, well-made car seat and in my opinion, you can’t beat that extra amount of protection for that precious life you’ve created.

From stories that I have read, it seems that one complaint so far is that the child’s view is restricted. My toddler is about 33 lbs. and 34 inches and she does just fine in the seat. It sits a little higher up than the other two seats we have used (EvenFlo and Cosco) and is a bit more compact but she has never seemed frustrated about the True Side Impact Protection (TM). If anything, the padded wings provide some extra head and neck support should she decide to take a rare nap in our vehicle.

The newly developed car seats will cost you anywhere between $150 - $300. To that I have to say, it’s worth it to comparison shop. We are on the road so much more these days and if it means my child will have just a little more protection while we’re out and about, well, you do the math. A lot of parents want the best stroller, I would personally opt for the best car seat considering there is a much higher fatality rate in vehicles than in strollers.

U.S. car seat companies have not planned to manufacture a seat with the side-impact feature because there is not yet sufficient test proof. The government is supposed to present some guidelines within the next few months, so, we’ll have to wait and see what happens then.

In the meantime, keep your eye out for these seats. If you’re on the fence at all about which car seat to purchase, take your time and do your research. I think one of the most important things you will purchase when you have a child is going to be the car seat. You will want a safe, comfortable ride for your tot and choosing one of the new Britax car seats with the True Side Impact Protection (TM) is a good place to start.

*The Britax website has a lot of valuable information and videos on car seats.
**Check out Consumers Union’s Child Car Seat Fact Sheet.
***Article on the new side-impact car seats in the Wall Street Journal online.

The clek olli booster seat is a new, contemporary backless booster seat manufactured by Canadian company, Magna Aftermarket, Inc. The Olli booster seat is designed with an integrated rigid LATCH system that is as easy as cheesecake to install into your vehicle (models 2001 and later).

Unfortunately, I do not have a picture of Hailey using her olli because she does not meet the height and weight requirements yet. To use the olli, your child must be 40-57 in. (101-145 cm.) in height and 40-100 lbs. (18-45 kg.). That would be about age 4 to age 8 (or under 4′9″ in height and under 80 lbs. ). Before that, obviously, your child should be in a car seat. It is recommended by the NHTSA that when using a backless booster seat, your vehicle should have built-in headrests.

The olli booster seats retail at about $89.99 and is available in 8 fashionable colors. Purchase a seat in your favorite color and get yourself a clek jacket for the days that you decide you want something “a little different”. The booster seat covers retail at about $29.99. Choose from (top row, L-R) blacktop, sandlot, Clek blue, Olli green (bottom row, L-R) bubblegum camo, treehouse camo, zebra, leopard. To view the seat covers on the olli, click HERE.

Olli has also received an iParenting Media Award in the baby gear category this past August 2007.

*Click HERE to find out if your vehicle is compatible with the clek olli booster seat.

**If you have any questions regarding booster seat usage, please click HERE.

So I discovered today why people are willing to shell out a lot of money for a good stroller.  I got my B.O.B. Revolution Stroller yesterday, and I LOVE IT.  Up till now, we’ve been a strictly umbrella stroller family.  Well, no more.  The BOB has such a smooth feel to it.  It’s lightweight and SO easy to put together.  E$ and I wheel Noel all around in it.  We both said that it’s almost like the stroller is doing the work and you’re not struggling to make it go.

Now, when we try to put Noel in the umbrella stroller, it’s tear city.  Today, he was laughing and enjoying himself.  There’s room for him to move around, room for drinks and snacks, and room for up to 10 lbs. of cargo underneath!  As if these weren’t enough selling points, you’ll have no more wheels getting stuck in a weird position…the front wheel turns 360 degrees!

This is the Mercedes of strollers.  I am on board the BOB Stroller wagon - jump on with me!

I just came from a playgroup at a park where a friend of mine has something called a “WeeRide Kangaroo Child Carrier” on her bike. It’s a bike seat for a child that goes IN FRONT OF YOU instead of behind. She told me her toddler LOVES to go for rides and shouts “weeeeeee”! Hence the name, WeeRide, I guess. Anyway, this seat is totally cool, so I had to post about it. You can find it at Amazon.com, Target, Ebay

The Kangaroo retails for around $80.00 but I’ve seen it as low as $30.00 on Ebay. If you search around, you’ll probably get lucky and find it pretty cheap. Kent is the manufacturer of these fine seats and they also sell other kid’s accessories, as well. Click the Kent link and watch a video of the Weeride Carrier. You’d also want to pick up a helmet that fits your child’s head, for sure. They have a helmet that fits kids ages 2-4 yrs. Let’s go ride our bicycles!